Melanin is a naturally occurring compound commonly found in the skin, hair and retinas of humans and higher animals. Melanin is a protein comprised almost exclusively of the amino acid tyrosine and is synthesized by melanin-producing cells known as melanocytes in response to exposure to certain wavelengths of ultraviolet (UV) light. This reaction illustrates the primary utility of melanin; it is a tremendously effective absorber of UV light. UV light can be quite harmful to living organisms due to its propensity to cause cellular mutations, such as thymine dimers in DNA, which can cause melanoma and related skin cancers. Melanin is thus vital to the survival of many organisms.
Because melanin is such an excellent absorber of UV light, it has found a variety of industrial applications. In the cosmetics industry, for instance, melanin is used in makeup and other skin care products to provide greater UV protection to the user. Melanin is also used as a substitute for para-aminobenzoic acid (PABA), another compound that absorbs UV light. PABA can become toxic under certain conditions, which may lead to adverse reactions in some individuals. Melanin has also been used in paints, varnishes, and other surface protection formulations to provide greater UV protection to these surfaces. In addition, melanin has certain medical properties that allow it to bind a number of chemicals and drugs, thereby making it useful in the detection of low levels of compounds and metabolites, or in the elimination of toxic target
Industrial production of melanin and melanin-like pigments have involved expressing a cloned gene in a bacterium or other microbe under complex and exacting conditions. Indeed, it is widely recognized that the isolation and purification of melanin require rather drastic procedures. Most melanin production involves the use of recombinant DNA technologies. These technologies usually require the activation of melanin production by the addition of an inducing agent. Cell cultures have also been used to produce melanin industrially, but again, these processes are complex and very expensive. Furthermore, melanin is not water soluble in its natural state. Technologies exist to make melanin water soluble, but these technologies involve the addition of chemicals such as trypsin or triethanolamine to solubilize the melanin.
Thus, until the advent of the present invention, industry and medical science have been confronted with a quandary: Melanin is a vital and useful substance, but expensive and complicated to obtain. The natural result of this dilemma is elevated costs. Melanin products and technologies relying on melanin have been offered to the public at high prices to offset the expense of obtaining melanin. Consumers, who benefit most from the use of melanin, have been forced to cover this expense. Given this price pressure, it is possible that some consumers have been unwilling or unable to pay the high price for melanin products and, as a result, have subjected themselves to harmful UV radiation which could have otherwise been avoided by use of such products. Over time, this could have serious health consequences.